Hiking – My Second Running Life

Return to Prairie Mountain!

Just as Santa can be counted on for a visit in late December, we look to my friend Tim to reveal the details of the annual Prairie Mountain Winter Sunrise Hike. True to form, Tim set the date for the 2025 hike on December 29. Sunrise on that day would be, within a few seconds, the latest of the year.

Working back from a target of 8:39:33 a.m., our convoy of eight hikers met up at the Tsuut’ina Subway on Buffalo Run Boulevard at 6:10 a.m. With practiced efficiency, we were geared up and on the trail by 7:00 a.m. We expected to have ample time to reach the summit.

I’ve posted on our previous PM hikes, and I’m pleased to say these pieces have been popular. In 2023, I shared photos of a beautiful sunrise in Part 1: The Hike and delved into the mysteries of the celestial world for Part 2: The Science. We were not deterred by last year’s cloudy conditions—you can read about that hike here. This year’s forecast suggested that the star attraction would likely make a return appearance.

For readers who are unfamiliar with Prairie Mountain, it is the most accessible mountain for Calgary hikers. Accessible doesn’t mean easy, though—this is a good workout at any time. Last year, I noted that the hike seemed to be tougher than what I remembered. This time out, I had the same feeling. I’m not sure I like that trend! One foot, then the other. Repeat.

The Hiking Bit

Given the snow-packed conditions on the trail, I was (again) very thankful for the new stone steps on the toughest sections. Even so, I welcomed a short pause at the first lookout, where we switched off our headlamps. I couldn’t help but notice the vibrant orange light to the east, which was already impressive as we approached the summit ridge. Were we too late?

Because any PM summit is an impressive achievement, here’s my Strava activity summary.

A few words on equipment. I decided to bring my “good camera”, the totally manual Leica M10. It’s a wonderful camera, but when you are bringing up the rear in the dark, as I was, adjustments are challenging. That meant I came home with blurry shots of my hiking partners’ backsides and severely underexposed images. Overall, I think the Ricoh GR III is better suited to this task. As always, my Kahtoola Microspikes and ancient red Komperdell poles were a necessity.

As usual, our group set a steady pace. (I hang around with some very healthy folks.) It’s hard to blame my comparatively slow pace on my photographic duties unless I present a few photos. So here’s the evidence!

Note: Copyright for all pictures is mine

We enjoyed the relatively mild temperature (-5C) and the shelter of the treeline for most of the hike. However, as soon as we reached the summit ridge, we were immersed in a strong westerly wind. We slogged the rest of the way up the ridge. The small Canadian flag on the summit cairn was no match for the stiff breeze. We headed for the shelter of a few scraggly trees below the summit to wait for the rest of our group. With fingers losing feeling, operating cameras and zippers became almost impossible. There was no loitering at the top on this day!

The Technical Bit

Given the challenges I mentioned with manual camera settings, I thought it might be interesting to present a comparison of my pre- and post-editing for one of this year’s key PM shots. I suppose this is called making lemonade out of lemons.

Of course, everyone hopes for a good group picture at the summit. This year, we imposed on a solo hiker who reached the summit just ahead of us to do the honours. Now, my comment that “the settings should be fine” must be tempered with the reality that I didn’t actually look at these before handing over the camera. Yes, I was freezing, the wind was howling, and for all I know, he had never touched a manual camera before. I’m fully to blame for any technical shortcomings. That said, my heart sank when I saw the images straight out of the camera. However, with some comprehensive (and slightly desperate) work in Lightroom Classic, I managed to extract a passable image. You can compare the before and after image here:

A hardy group celebrates another Prairie summit!

At the risk of losing some readers, I’ll summarize the edits I made to this image in my attempt to rescue it. First, I increased the overall exposure significantly—a whopping 3.5 stops. I think the meter was fooled by the sun in the centre of the image. Then I dropped the sky by a stop, and raised the foreground by almost another stop. I raised the white balance to warm the image up slightly. I dropped the highlights, mostly around the sun, and raised the shadows. Then I increased the saturation, clarity and dehaze. That left me with a noisy image, which I tried to fix using the latest AI tools in Lightroom. In the end, I gave up, as all this did was create artifacts that were, to my eye, worse than the noise.

So, as long as no one looks too closely, this is a fair reminder of what it felt like to stand on the summit that morning. My homework for next year is to be better prepared.

Wrapping Up

With the start of a new year, one is often moved to contemplate things that truly have value and be thankful for people who are important in life. I’m very fortunate to be surrounded by like-minded people who value fitness and friendship. And we are all blessed to have special places like Kananaskis just a short drive from home. Thanks, Tim, for getting us out there and up there again.

The annual winter solstice hike was a great experience and a perfect end to the year. Oh yes, the post-hike coffee and baked goods at the Handle-bar Cafe in Bragg Creek were delicious. And well earned.

Until next time, be well, BE FAST—and Happy New Year to all!

Favourite Hikes: Cory Pass/Edith Pass

I’m back with another entry in my series of Favourite Hikes. This time, I’ll describe an incredible hike in Banff National Park that is somewhat of a hidden gem. The Cory Pass/Edith Pass circuit is both challenging and scenic. It offers a full experience, with varied terrain and some unusual geological formations. And maybe best of all, it manages to be both close to the Banff townsite AND not overrun by visitors.

I did this hike in July 2021. It was a long but extremely satisfying day in the mountains with my friends Peter and Tim.

Cory Pass/Edith Pass Overview

We have many hiking guides around our house, and the consensus among them is that the Cory Pass/Edith Pass circuit is well worth the considerable effort it requires. Most guides suggest doing the route as a circuit, to introduce some variety on the return leg. Out-and-back options are obviously available depending on weather, skill level, or one’s own preferences.

The other question to ask, if you’re considering this hike, is the direction to do the circuit. We followed the more popular clockwise direction, and this makes sense because it puts the steep ascent up front. It’s usually easier to climb than to descend steeply.

Here’s the Strava record of our hike:

A few things will be clear from this summary. The hike is essentially a circumnavigation of Mount Edith. It’s long and with considerable elevation gain. We did some extra hiking and climbing during the day, so our figures are inflated compared to the basic route. Most descriptions put the circuit at about 14 km and 1,000 m of gain. Timewise, our outing was in the range of most estimates, which are 5-7 hours for the circuit.

Be aware that the north side of Mt. Edith involves some slogging on scree slopes, and the route can be a little hard to find on the return leg where the trail heads back into the forest. It wasn’t an issue when we did the hike, but snow can make the trail impassible until mid-summer. If you plan accordingly, the hike is well worth the effort.

Outbound to Cory Pass

Shortly after departing from the Fireside Day Use area—a quick drive from Banff and a worthy picnic spot—the trail splits to form the Cory Pass/Edith Pass circuit. And the climbing starts immediately after turning left for Cory Pass. There are good views of the Banff townsite and Mount Rundle, but mostly this section is about gaining elevation, and quite relentlessly, for a few kilometres along the south ridge of Mount Edith.

The grade moderates onto a long, dry traverse of the base of the mountain. Mount Cory is on the left. Even though the trail is narrow and exposed in spots, it never creates any significant challenges. For some reason, possibly my aching quads, I have no pictures from this part of the hike. Fortunately, here are a couple of shots taken along the traverse, courtesy of the Hike the Canadian Rockies website.

Finally, after about 6 km of effort, the col at Cory Pass is reached. The elevation is 2,350 metres. Here, the views are spectacular.

Gargoyle Valley

Descending steeply from Cory Pass is a scree trail between Mount Edith and Mount Louis—a jagged, dogtooth peak which looms large on the horizon. This section of the hike was the highlight for me, because of the variations in scenery. Otherworldly geological formations, the “gargoyles”, give the valley its name.

We enjoyed a leisurely lunch and did some exploring in and around the large rock pinnacles. Marmots enjoy sunning themselves on the high flat tops of the formations.

Once past the gargoyles, there is a long slog across a scree slope on the north side of Mount Edith. Finding the trail is never in doubt but the footing can be tricky in spots—poles are a must here. Gaiters too! A large boulder field marks the end of the scree trail. Again, the trail is easily found through the boulders.

Inbound via Edith Pass

Once you’ve picked your way through the boulder field, and enjoyed one last view of Mount Louis—now behind you to the north—it’s important to pay attention to find the return trail. We made one brief false start. The path becomes obvious if you look and hike upwards. There is a sign where bare slopes give way to the treeline.

The last 3 or 4 km of the trail are on a gradual decline through a dense forest. The mosquitoes and the noise of the highway were what I remember most in this section. To be honest, the exit trail is rather anticlimactic after the impressive sights we experienced earlier in the day. As is often the case in the Rockies, the ecosystem on the east side of the mountain is very different from the west side.

Eventually, the Cory/Edith fork is reached, leaving only an easy stroll back to the parking lot.

Summing Up

It was smiles all around (sort of) when we got back to Fireside for a well-deserved snack and beverage. Tim, Peter and I agree that the Cory Pass/Edith Pass hike checks many boxes, having everything we look for in a memorable hike. There’s plenty of challenge, but even more rewards. Highly recommended!

Until next time, happy trails. BE FAST!

Favourite Hikes: Lake O’Hara Alpine Circuit

One of our current home projects is a decluttering exercise. And one of the major targets for cleanup is our collection of photographs. Like many families, we have a box—make that several boxes—full of snapshots. The work of identifying and digitizing keepers is challenging. Still, there is always the element of surprise, as we rediscover treasures from the past.

Archiving “vintage” photographs gave me an idea for a new series—let’s call it Favourite Hikes. Deborah and I have enjoyed the mountain parks for 40 years. We are not the most avid hikers, but we have many fond memories of time spent in the mountains. This series will be a chance to revisit some of our personal highlights.

The Alpine Circuit

Near the top of our list of favourite Rocky Mountain hikes is the Lake O’Hara Alpine Circuit. And we’re not alone. This hike is widely regarded as one of the classic alpine circuits in the Canadian Rockies. By extension, it surely ranks among the best mountain hikes in the world.

Starting at the historic Lake O’Hara Lodge, the Alpine Circuit is a picturesque 11-kilometre loop, which touches several of the highlights of this exclusive region of Yoho National Park. Deb and I have done the hike twice, roughly 25 years apart (last in August 2014). I think we agree that it was a bit more challenging the second time!

Wiwaxy Gap and Huber Ledges

Done in the usual clockwise direction, the Alpine Circuit hike makes the most of the elevation gained from a strenuous 500-metre climb from the lake up to Wiwaxy Gap. Because this climb consumes the first hour of the hike, it makes the rest of the outing that much more enjoyable. Make no mistake though, there are plenty of elevation gains and losses to come.

The climbing begins soon after leaving the shoreline. Hearts will be pounding by the time the col at the base of Wiwaxy Peak is reached. The word “Wiwaxy” means “windy” in the Stoney Nakoda language, and it is an accurate description. The winds can be strong in the gap. If you aren’t breathless when you arrive, the views of Victoria and Huber Glaciers to the north should do the trick!

Although it means a slow loss of elevation, the next segment is a 2-kilometre traverse of the Huber Ledges to Lake Oesa. Finding the trail is easy, with blue and yellow patches marking the way. As we found on a late-season hike on the ledges in 2013, wet or snowy conditions can make the footing tricky.

There are glimpses of the lake as you progress along the ledges, and the feeling of anticipation is palpable.

Lake Oesa and Yukness Ledges

If there is a better spot for a picnic lunch anywhere in the Rockies than Lake Oesa, I’d like to know where that is. Oesa is another Stoney Nakoda word—it means “corner”. There’s some debate about whether the lake’s name is pronounced “oh-EE-sa” or “oh-ESS-a”. However you pronounce it, Oesa is a place you feel you could stay for hours. But, remembering that there is more to see, you finish your lunch, cinch up your boots, and get back on the trail.

Now it’s some easy scrambling on the scree slopes of Yukness Mountain. There are some short exposed sections as you work your way around the Yukness Ledges toward the next major stop at Opabin Lake. The route becomes less scrambly as you approach the lake. There are amazing views of Lake O’Hara along this section of the route, and Opabin is another perfect spot to take a breather.

Opabin Plateau and All Souls Prospect

Opabin Plateau is another area worth exploring—it’s a hanging valley, with plenty of small pools and of course, great views. There’s a short climb up to Opabin Prospect if you are feeling strong. The stone steps crossing the plateau were constructed decades ago by Lawrence Grassi, a legendary trail builder who left his mark all over the Lake O’Hara region.

If the Alpine Circuit is your goal, there’s more work to do—a climb from Opabin to All Souls Prospect. On the scree trail above Opabin Plateau, the route to All Souls may be the toughest part of the hike. Again, the blue and yellow markers are a big help. The viewpoint itself is a scraggly spot on the flank of Mount Schaffer. The spectacular views over Schaffer Lake and the Odaray Plateau make the effort of getting there worthwhile.

From All Souls Prospect, just when your quads least want to know about it, there’s some downclimbing needed, as you pick your way through boulder fields and a larch forest. There’s a gentle stroll past the Elizabeth Parker Hut and the Le Relais campsite before reaching the finish at Lake O’Hara.

Summing Up

It’s worth mentioning that any of the trails that connect to form the Alpine Circuit can be done on their own. There are also many offshoots and logical connections between trails. In fact, the Lake O’Hara region has so many great hikes that I’m already thinking of another piece.

Much has been written about Lake O’Hara. It’s one of those places that’s hard to describe unless you’ve been there. Pictures don’t do it justice. And in this area that’s defined by superlatives, there’s one hike that seems to capture the magic of Lake O’Hara best—the Alpine Circuit. Deb and I feel fortunate to have completed the Circuit, twice.

Until next time, happy trails. Be well, and BE FAST!

Prairie Mountain Sunrise Hike 2024

In mid-December, my friend Tim announced the details of what can now be called the Annual Prairie Mountain Winter Sunrise Hike. This would be the third (or was it the fourth?) consecutive trek. Whatever the number, it’s still a great idea.

After consulting his celestial tables, Tim determined that the morning of December 30 would align us with the latest sunrise of the season, plus or minus a few seconds.

If you haven’t seen my posts on last year’s hike, I recommend you check out Part 1: The Hike and Part 2: The Science. (Tim even organized a Prairie Mountain summer solstice hike in June 2024 for the real early risers. You can read about that one here.)

For those who aren’t familiar with Prairie Mountain in Kananaskis, it is the most accessible mountain for Calgary hikers. Conditions on the trail and at the summit can be quite variable, so it’s important to check the weather and prepare for anything. Of course, allowance for the drive and the ascent were critical to getting us to the summit in good time for the sun’s (hopeful) appearance at 8:39 a.m.

This year, our party consisted of eight hikers. We had seven regulars and one PM rookie… welcome Ken! We woke up to snowy conditions in Calgary, a big change from the prevailing weather pattern of the previous month. What awaited us at the summit?

Dan and I joined the convoy that left Calgary at 6:10 a.m. We reached the trailhead at around 7 and were off and climbing just a few minutes later.

The conditions (or maybe it was my conditioning) made for a tougher hike than what I remember in 2023. After last year’s outing, I knew what to expect on the revamped (and in my opinion, significantly improved) Prairie Mountain trail. I put my head down and tried to dole out my energy efficiently. I knew that counting three one-kilometre beeps from my Garmin would just about put us on the summit ridge. I welcomed a couple of short breaks, first to shut off our headlamps and then to regroup at the lower viewpoint.

On this morning, there was only the dimmest of dawn light to guide us. Clouds socked in the summit as we arrived. There would be no repeat of last year’s glorious sunrise show. But no matter. Fortunately, there was little wind. We all grabbed a quick snack, posed for a couple of group photos, and got organized for the descent. I was thankful for my Kahtoola Microspikes, which were a necessity as we got to some slippery sections lower on the mountain.

Here’s my activity summary from Strava. One thing is clear: Prairie Mountain is always a good workout!

I was impressed by the calibre of our hiking group. What a hardy and enthusiastic bunch… including our youngest hiker, who didn’t even need a hat! Here are a few photos from this year’s hike, taken with my constant companion, the invincible Ricoh GR III.

And the sun? It made only the briefest of appearances, as if to tease us, just before we arrived back at the trailhead.

Too little, too late (December 30, 2024)

So, even though the sun didn’t show up to the party, it was still an enjoyable outing and a good way to close out 2024. I look forward to more adventures in the new year.

On that note, Happy New Year to all. Be well, and BE FAST!

Prairie Mountain – Summer Solstice

The arrival of summer in the northern hemisphere is welcome for many reasons. There is a minor downside, if one plans to make a sunrise trek to the peak of Prairie Mountain in Kananaskis: the early start. Of course, my friend Tim hatched the idea, as the perfect complement to our winter solstice hike last December. If you haven’t read my blog pieces for that epic outing, here are links to Part One (the hike) and Part Two (the science).

My first reaction was “I’m in!” Then, when the reality of the required 2:50 a.m. departure from Calgary set in, I found several excuses to bail out. To Tim’s credit, he persevered and he managed to wrangle a couple of friends to join him. He didn’t even mind sharing his photos, so I could pretend to have been there!

The Hike

Tim, Jerry and Peter departed the Prairie Mountain trailhead at 3:50 a.m. and reached the summit in time for the 5:21 a.m. sunrise. Tim commented that it was amazing to see the full moon go down in the west while the sun was coming up in the east. He mentioned that while he knew the sun would break the horizon much further north than it did on the winter solstice, it was even more of a difference than he expected. More on that later.

With thanks to Tim, here are a few photos from their hike:

Prairie Mountain Sunrise / June 20, 2024 (Photo: Tim A)

Tim, Peter and Jerry at the summit / June 20, 2024 (Photo: Tim A)

Western vista, from the Summit / June 20, 2024 (Photo: Tim A)

The Science (abbreviated)

For the winter solstice, you may recall I did some research on the unexpected timing of the solstice, and why the day with the latest sunrise wasn’t the same as what we think of as the shortest day of the year. If you are interested in orbital eccentricity, angles of obliquity, solar days, and other astronomical wonders, you can read about them here.

Since it’s summer, and I’m feeling a bit lazy, I did a shortened version of the research. You’ll be happy to know that I confirmed the same factors affect the timing of the summer solstice. Here’s what I found:

The summer solstice occurred at 2:50 p.m. on June 20
The earliest sunrise was at 5:20 a.m. on June 16
The longest solar day was 16:33:17 (hh:mm:ss) on June 20

Tim’s comment about the sun’s compass direction at sunrise on June 20 compared to the direction on December 29 got me thinking. I marked up a trail map for the area of Prairie Mountain. The arrows show the sun’s compass direction at sunrise and sunset, on the summer (blue) and winter (red) solstices, respectively. What’s interesting is just how much the sun’s coverage changes between the two solstices.

Sunrise/sunset compass directions at the solstices, Prairie Mountain

The apparent travel of the sun (because it’s the earth that’s moving around the sun, after all) is from 128 degrees (roughly southeast) at sunrise to 233 degrees (roughly SW) at sunset on the winter solstice. That’s a span of 105 degrees. In contrast, the sun traverses a range from 49 degrees (roughly NE) to 311 degrees (nearly NW) at the summer solstice—a span of 262 degrees.

Isn’t that fascinating? I think so too.

Until next time, thanks for reading!

Prairie Mountain Sunrise, Part 2

The Science

NOTE: This article was updated in January 2026 to correct errors and expand on some of the concepts.

After we returned to Calgary from our December 29 Prairie Mountain sunrise hike, I started to wonder about the small anomaly that led us to pick that day. Specifically, the fact that the day with the latest sunrise does not align with the winter solstice in the northern hemisphere. Before I get into the science, here’s another photo from that memorable morning.

Looking northwest from the summit (December 29, 2023)

I did some research and learned the interesting astronomical reasons for this phenomenon. I first looked up the sunrise/sunset tables for southern Alberta. The solstice occurred at8:27 p.m. on December 21, but the latest sunrise occurred more than a week later. Not only that, the date of our earliest sunset was well before the solstice—way back on December 12, to be exact.

What’s going on here? After all, these differences are not small.

While it’s true that the solstice is the shortest day based on sunlight hours, it isn’t the shortest solar day, which is defined as the measured time for the sun to pass over a given meridian line from one day to the next. In fact, solar days are the longest in December. It’s important to note that solar days are not the same as clock days, which are the familiar 24-hour periods that we measure with our timepieces.

A recent article in Scientific American explains that there are two reasons for this counterintuitive result. With all credit to the excellent minutephysics video by Henry Reich (“Why December Has the Longest Days”) referenced in the article, I’ve reproduced the two reasons in the following chart.

First, the shape of the Earth’s orbit is not a circle but an oval, an ellipse. The difference between the earth’s nearest and farthest points from the sun is small, about 3 percent of its average orbital distance of 150 million kilometres. This matters because as the earth reaches its closest point (called the perihelion), it moves faster through space. This faster movement lengthens the solar day—again, that’s the time needed for a given line of longitude to come around the next day to align with the sun. This effect adds about eight seconds to the solar day.

Besides the eccentricity of the earth’s orbit, the tilt of its axis also contributes to the disparity between solar day and clock day. This effect, called the obliquity effect, lengthens the solar days by about 20 seconds around the solstices and shortens them by about 20 seconds around the equinoxes.

The impact of these two factors on the solar day is well known. There is even an equation of time to relate solar time to clock time. Mathematically, the effect is represented by two sine wave functions. The frequency of the eccentricity curve matches the earth’s annual rotation, and the tilt curve goes through two cycles each year. The figure below was generated on PlanetCalc. It shows how adding the curves results in solar days that are shortest in February and longest in December. There is also a smaller peak in the spring and a dip in the summer.

Source: PlanetCalc Equation of Time calculator for 2024

Because perihelion occurs close to the winter solstice (on January 2), the two day-lengthening effects are additive, totalling about 30 seconds a day at the peak in November. These “extra” seconds are pushed forward to subsequent days, making solar noon (the precise time that the sun reaches its highest point in the sky each day) later and later at that time of the year. And because sunrises and sunsets are symmetrical around solar noon, we get the observed result: the earliest sunset gets shifted backward (before the solstice), and the latest sunrise gets pushed forward (after the solstice).

As a final point, if you were to do an experiment in which you marked the tip of the shadow cast by a sundial each day at precisely noon, it would trace out a unique, elongated figure eight shape over the course of a year. That shape is called an analemma, and it is a graph of the equation of time. Changes along the vertical axis of the curve are due to the tilt of the earth (cycling between -23.5 degrees to +23.5 degrees), and changes along the horizontal axis are due to the eccentricity of the earth’s orbit.

The figure at left is the analemma plotted at noon GMT from the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, England (Source: JPL Horizons Lab). I like this figure because it includes calendar notations, which make it easy to compare with the equation of time graph shown above.

Whew! I expected the answer to this question to be simple, but it’s taken me a few tries and a lot of soak time to understand. Somehow it seems appropriate, having just started a new year (and passed the perihelion), to recognize that the universe is full of mystery.

Until next time,